The news broadcast was abruptly shut off. Steve had no desire to listen to what Bucky had done - no, what he'd been made to do. His best friend had been turned into a pawn for the Hydra bosses to abuse as they wished, forced to serve the organisation they had tried so hard to abolish during the war.
"Some of us actually wanted to listen to that story, Cap." Tony sighed, his mouth curving up into a smirk. Steve leaned forward, his back hunched, the tension in his shoulders almost unbearable. He glanced at each of his teammates sat around the table, before sighing.
"It's not him." Tony gave him a disbelieving glance. "I mean, yes, it's his body, but it's not Bucky. He wouldn't do this, I mean, he just... wouldn't." Steve was unable to say anymore. Unable to tell the team that the Bucky they blame for the actions of the Winter Soldier saved his ass multiple times before the war, and during it. Unable to say how, when Steve didn't know when to back down from a fight, Bucky was always there to have his back. How, when Steve had no one, no family, no relatives, he always had Bucky. Bucky was more than just his best friend; he was the only family he had left.
"How do you know, Rogers?" Nat questioned, curiously. She had seen him face Bucky, had seen how hes was unwilling to fight him. Wanda leaned forward, brown locks falling over her face.
"Years before the war, my ma died. She was the only family I had left. I had no one. But I still managed to have Bucky. He always stood by me. He would always have my back in a fight, never let me down. The Bucky I know, would never do anything to hurt anyone. I've let him down by not being there, by not going back to find his body, by not realising my best friend was still out there somewhere." Steve told the team. The rest of the team looked a bit guilty at his confession, as up until this point they had never considered how Steve felt about Bucky, and how he would feel if he was apprehended like the authorities wanted.
"I'm going to find him. And I'm going to help him remember who he is. If any of you want to stop me, good luck," Steve got out of his chair and began to exit the room.
"I can't let him down anymore than I already have."